Paving the Way

Windows 7 Fault Tolerant Heap Prevents Crashing

Scott McEachron — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 05:37:01 +0000

The Bottom Line
Microsoft has been busy, and they’ve made some smart decisions programatically for Windows 7. The Fault Tolerant heap will help keep applications from crashing once Windows 7 recognizes a pattern, and applies a resolution. Procedures that may have crashed in the past, are less likely to crash in the future. For the normal user, should this be disabled? Absolutely not.

The Details
There’s a new feature in Windows 7 called Fault Tolerant Heap that changes the way an application handles memory if it sees an app is crashing. Consequently, something that caused a crash may not crash again after FTH has been enabled. So in order to reproduce an issue you need to purge the FTH history. Below you will find a command to do this.

If you often run a testing environment, as I do, it would be wise to consider running this command after a crash on Windows 7, otherwise FTH will mask issues.

I’ve also included some info below that explains what FTH does when it is enabled.

Description
The Fault Tolerant Heap (FTH) is a subsystem of Windows 7 responsible for monitoring application crashes and autonomously applying mitigations to prevent future crashes on a per application basis. For the vast majority of users, FTH will function with no need for intervention or change on their part. However, in some cases, application developers and software testers may need to override the default behavior of this system.

Viewing Fault Tolerant Heap activity
Fault Tolerant Heap logs information when the service starts, stops, or starts mitigating problems for a new application. To view this information, follow these steps:

1. Click on the start menu
2. Right-click Computer and choose Manage
3. Click Event Viewer > Applications and Services Logs > Microsoft > Windows > Fault-Tolerant-Heap
4. View FTH Events

The service stop and start events contain no additional data. The FTH Enabled event contains the Process ID (PID), the process image name, and the process instance start time.

Disabling Fault Tolerant Heap
CAUTION: Serious problems may occur if you modify the registry incorrectly by using Registry Editor or by using another method. These problems may require you to reinstall the operating system. Microsoft cannot guarantee that these problems can be solved. Modify the registry at your own risk.

To disable Fault Tolerant Heap entirely on a system, set the REG_DWORD value HKLM\Software\Microsoft\FTH\Enabled to 0. After changing this value, restart the system. FTH will no longer activate for new applications.

Resetting the list of applications tracked by FTH
Fault Tolerant heap is self-managing and will autonomously stop applying in the case that mitigations are not effective for a given application. However, if you need to reset the list of applications for which FTH is mitigating problems (for example, if you are testing an application and need to reproduce a crash that FTH is mitigating), you can run the following command from an elevated command prompt:

Rundll32.exe fthsvc.dll,FthSysprepSpecialize

CAUTION: Running this command will clear all FTH applications, so applications that are currently functioning properly may begin to crash again after running this command.

Leaving FTH enabled does 4 things:

1. Zero out allocated memory. This protects against some ununitialized memory errors.
2. They add 8 bytes of padding to the end of the allocation plus 24 bytes for an FTH data structure to each allocated block. This helps fix buffer overruns.
3. They delay frees. When you call free on a block, they don’t actually free it. It goes into a circular list. Once the list holds 4MB of blocks, they start freeing the oldest blocks in the list so that the list does not grow bigger than 4MB. This helps fix dangling pointers and double frees.
4. They do not free during application shutdown. Calls to free are ignored during shutdown.

After enabling FTH Windows 7 continues to monitor the application. If FTH is not reducing the crash frequency, FTH is turned off for that application.

The memory cost of FTH obviously depends on the type of allocations an application makes. FTH will have a bigger impact on an application with lots of small allocations. There is a performance cost as well. Some benchmarks tests Microsoft did on IE showed about a 10% performance hit on page load.

Windows 7, 64-bit, 9Gb RAM
It stands to reason, if you’re looking at upgrading systems, go with Windows 7, 64-bit, 9Gb RAM (because newer systems have tri-channel addressing; RAM is best in blocks of 3Gb – 3,6,9,12Gb, etc.).

The release of Intel’s new Nehalem-based Core i7 CPU has brought the demand for tri-channel memory to the desktop for the first time.

What is tri-channel memory?
Tri-channel memory overcomes the bandwidth limitations of individual memory modules by combining the bandwidth of three sticks at a time, and overcoming DDR2 limitations.

If you buy a new 64-bit Windows 7 system with 8Gb RAM, you’ve made your first mistake (you should have requested 9Gb). By the way, Windows 7 System Maximums are as follows:

Starter: 8GB
Home Basic: 8GB
Home Premium: 16GB
Professional: 192GB
Enterprise: 192GB
Ultimate: 192GB

Texas Facilities Commission Mandates AutoCAD Civil 3D Use

Scott McEachron — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 15:48:02 +0000

TFC Guidelines
The Texas Facilities Commission – Professional Service Provider Guidelines and Standards (Edit Date: 1/15/2010) has mandated the use of AutoCAD Civil 3D 2010. Other software now required includes, but is not limited to Revit, Navisworks, and Design Review (for publishing DWF files; dwfx files are unacceptable).

Per TGC Chapter 2166.156(c), the guideline has been mandated to “…ensure that [preliminary and working] plans and specifications” for all facilities constructed for the purpose of housing a State of Texas agency (or agencies):
a. “Are clear and complete;
b. Permit execution of the project with appropriate economy and efficiency; and
c. Conform with the requirements described by the Project Analysis”.

Important Requirements

Professional Service Providers (Civil Engineering Firms, Land Surveying Firms, etc.) MUST provide proper AutoCAD Civil 3D Training
Drawings must be audited and purged before submittal
Entity intersections meet each other properly (use of OSNAP’s)
Entities outside the drawing limits are deleted
Layering system conforms to NCS AIA CAD Layer Standard
Layer Matrix shall be provided with the Record Documents showing the use of the NCS AIA CAD Layer Guidelines
Use only standard text fonts supplied with AutoCAD’s font library
CTB files are required (no STB files)
All BIM Models shall be geo-referenced to the Texas NAD-83 State Plane Zone appropriate to the individual project location (e.g. Central Zone, North Central Zone)
Models must be CREATED using AutoCAD Civil 3D (e.g. Corridor model, terrain model, etc.).

Click to download the TFC 2010 Guidelines.

AutoCAD Civil 3D Tutorials

AutoCAD Civil 3D Tutorials

New Additions to the Library at I.II.I

Scott McEachron — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 02:25:15 +0000

As you know, last year marked the opening of our client library. The following titles were introduced this week

OBJ103 BYBLOCK: The Secret to Setting Up Styles.
If I could tell you the one secret to setting up styles in your organization, this one may be the Holy Grail. runtime 0:11:11

Civil 3D Tutorials*
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Parcel Layout 101 (cul-de-sac parcels)

Scott McEachron — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 18:07:25 +0000

Civil 3D has a full set of automatic parcel layout tools, but you’ll find they are limited in the way in which they navigate around a building line at a cul-de-sac (or other concave arcs). This tutorial walks through the process of laying out parcels around a cul-de-sac using “old school” methods. The tools are quick, and strong, but because the methodology explained is centered around COGO, this procedure is accurate and can be practiced in basic AutoCAD, Land Desktop, or AutoCAD Civil 3D.

It’s the same method I use today. The following video requires Quicktime.

Civil 3D Tutorials*
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Haiti Earthquake: Converting Shipping Containers Into Emergency Housing

Scott McEachron — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 16:34:29 +0000

Autodesk Social Media Survey

Scott McEachron — Thu, 07 Jan 2010 18:15:47 +0000

Autodesk is conducting research to understand how AutoCAD Civil 3D users and buyers engage in online social media, how social behavior is evolving in your business, and where business buyers choose to participate in online communities.

This 15 minute survey will not ask for any personally identifying information. They will use your responses in aggregate only and will not attribute any responses back to you.

Click Here to take the survey.

Civil 3D Tutorials*
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Bump

Scott McEachron — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 01:24:40 +0000

Mastering Snippet: The Delta Symbol

Scott McEachron — Wed, 23 Sep 2009 16:22:58 +0000

From page 52 in Mastering AutoCAD Civil 3D 2010:

“In the Text Component Editor for a curve label, the value that most people would prefer to as a delta angle is called the General Segment Total Angle. To insert the Delta symbol in a label, simply type \U+0394 in the Text Editor window on the right side of the Text Component Editor dialog box…”

Other Unicode symbols include:
Almost Equal \U+2248
Angle \U+2220
Boundary Line \U+E100
Center Line \U+2104
Cubed \U+00B3
Degree sign \U+00B0
Delta \U+0394
Diameter \U+00F8
Flow line \U+E101
Not Equal \U+2260
One Half \U+00BD
Percent \U+0025
Plus-Minus sign \U+00B1
Pound sign \U+00A3
Property Line \U+214A
Quarter \U+00BC
Squared \U+00B2
Three Quarters \U+00BE

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I.II.I Independent CAD/BIM Consultants

Scott McEachron — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 19:26:45 +0000

As the holidays approach and fiscal years come to a close this month for most federal, state, and local agencies, we usually see an increase in spending from municipalities as they finish out the year. This typically means we field more calls for Implementation, custom training and technical support, and as you can tell by the drop-off in our blogging efforts, this year appears to be no different.

The fall of the economy at this time last year led to a sharp decrease in A|E|C firm staffing, but the recent turn-around seems to have left many firms with new software through subscription services, but few people qualified to make that software sing. If you’ve found yourself in this position, there are several effective avenues for finding qualified help. They include hiring independent consultants to carry some of the work load, using on-line agencies to help meet staffing requirements, or training your staff to become more productive with the design tools they use.

The 5 member firms of The I.II.I Consortium, recently featured by TenLinks, have a combined 100 years of experience in their respective markets implementing CAD and BIM tools including GEOPAK, Civil 3D, Revit, Terramodel, and a host of other packages. If you’re looking for someone to carry some of your workload, no one is in a better position to deliver the quality of services you deserve at rates you can live with.

If hiring an IC for project work isn’t in your future, we offer both high-power training solutions, and unlimited access to our Technology Suite for as low as $20 for a one week subscription. Access to tutorials in the Technology Suite is free for all clients with a purchase of our Professional Services. Click Here for registration information.

If you’re looking to hire CAD staff for A|E|C work, we field calls every day from people looking for work; we just might know someone that can help you! If you’re looking to hire but need affordable assistance in training, try a subscription to our Technology Suite and we’ll create customized, localized tutorials for you.

If you simply need to hire soon, our favorite resource catering to CAD and BIM talent is CADtalent. CADtalent goes above and beyond to help you find the talent you need, and they email daily alerts as resumes are posted.

Warm regards,
Scott

Scott McEachron
The I.II.I Consortium
Dallas – Fort Worth

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I.II.I Adds Trimble Terramodel/GPS Guidance & Machine Control Services to Repertoire

Scott McEachron — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 05:22:46 +0000

I.II.I (one to one) is thrilled to announce the addition of Brian Van Pelt as a SME with more than 15 years unparalleled expertise in GPS Guidance & Machine Control, Trimble Terramodel, MicroStation, GEOPAK, and AutoCAD.

Formerly of McAninch Corporation, Brian managed the 3D Data Modeling – Highway sector. He has created and maintained complex 3D models for State Transportation Agencies in Iowa, Missouri, Kansas, Illinois, and North Carolina.

Brian modeled the largest GPS Guidance & Machine Control project in Missouri DOT history with excavation quantities of nearly 7 million cubic yards of material. The project included 7 miles of 4-lane divided highway, 2 full interchanges and 4 bridges.

Brian’s knowledge of standards and specifications used in the transportation industry is unparalleled.

Industry Comments:

Found the accuracy and detail of his work to be of the highest order.
His specialty is road projects and his expertise is second to none.
His attention to detail is impressive and is very efficient in providing accurate models.

The I.II.I Consortium
With a rapidly shrinking and faster interacting world, you need to leverage technology trends that are financially responsible. You need experts that combine not only an understanding of the latest tools and trends, but the wisdom to integrate them into real-world business models effectively. The I.II.I Consortium is a network of Architects, Engineers, Educators, and Subject Matter Experts dedicated to Architecture, Engineering, Land Surveying, and Construction excellence and committed to success through technology, CAD, BIM and IPD.

We’re the nation’s leading provider of high-powered Microstation™, GEOPAK™, AutoCAD, Autodesk Revit, Trimble Terramodel, and AutoCAD Civil 3D Implementation, Custom Training, and related Professional Services. We serve both public and private companies, as well as Federal, State, and Local agencies with real-world solutions for leveraging technology in innovative, fiscally responsible ways.

Click on the following link for more information about The I.II.I Consortium.

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